Former US president Donald Trump praised authoritarian leaders such as Adolf Hitler and Russian president Vladimir Putin on a number of occasions, according to a former chief of staff.
John Kelly, Mr Trump's former chief of staff, and John Bolton, who served as one of his national security advisers, made the comments to CNN's Jim Sciutto for his book The Return of Great Powers.
The former president allegedly said Nazi leader Hitler had done "some good things".
"He said, 'Well, but Hitler did some good things.' I said, 'Well, what?' And he said, 'Well, [Hitler] rebuilt the economy.' But what did he do with that rebuilt economy? He turned it against his own people and against the world. And I said, 'Sir, you can never say anything good about the guy. Nothing,'" Mr Kelly told the author.
In an interview for the book, Mr Bolton told Mr Sciutto that Mr Trump believed Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un were "OK" guys.
"He says to the press as he goes out to the helicopter, 'I think the easiest meeting might be with Vladimir Putin. Who would ever think that?'" Mr Bolton said. "There's an answer to that question. Only one person. You. You are the only person who would think that. The shrinks can make of that what they will, but I think it was 'I'm a big guy. They're big guys. I wish I could act like they do.'"
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung accused Mr Trump's former advisers of "spreading lies".
"John Kelly and John Bolton have completely beclowned themselves and are suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome by spreading lies," Mr Cheung told the Washington Examiner. "They need to seek professional help because their hatred is consuming their empty lives."
